Los Altos resident Adam Halper launches his “Senior Bootcamp” sessions in the fall through the Los Altos Recreation Department at Hillview Community Center and Los Altos Hills Town Hall. The classes are part of his fitness brand and company – Fitness Halpers, which specializes in personal training, boot camps, weight loss, balance training, posture alignment and high-intensity interval training.

Halper started Fitness Halpers last year with a mission to make an impact in the health and fitness industry. Corporate fitness businesses have become more focused on the “numbers game” rather than the people themselves, he said. But for Halper, the industry is about helping people, specifically those who need the most help. Although he has trained clients of all ages and physical capabilities, he said his business is “geared toward an older generation.”

His past experience has prepared him well for senior clients. Armed with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology, Halper spent four of his seven years of training working in hospitals and physical-therapy clinics, where patients’ ages averaged 55 and up. He is also a certified SilverSneakers instructor – a nationwide fitness program for older adults – and has a special interest in helping seniors.

Halper focuses on communicating effectively with senior clients, a key ingredient in the fitness partnership. He said he has a “real understanding of the reason for their pain, whether it’s posture, balance or strength related.”

“(The workout plan) is personalized, and he’s effective. … I think he has a real target audience for people like me, who are old with serious limitations,” Golden said.

Three major physical restrictions prompted Golden to seek Halper’s help: a bad knee, a damaged shoulder and an injured back that required surgery a year and a half ago. According to Golden, Halper has managed to address all his trouble spots by strengthening the muscles around them.

“He pushes me, but he’s really good about when to back off,” Golden said of Halper. “If something’s not working, he adjusts. If I can’t do something … he just has me do it (differently).”

Since working with Halper, Golden can tackle big hills that used to give him trouble on his bike rides, has increased his shoulder weights by 5 pounds and is able to stand for longer periods of time without suffering lower-back pain. Although Golden is still on the path to eliminating all his pain, his work with Halper is proof that it is possible to strengthen the body regardless of multiple physical setbacks.

That kind of progress in his patients is what Halper lives for – he said his clients’ advancements are the most rewarding part of his job.

“I get my satisfaction from the pleasure of the stories that come out of my clients’ hearts when they realize they can now do something that they could not before,” he said. “That inspired the creation of Fitness Halpers.”

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